BROMFIELD        STREET 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


BY 
HARRY  B.  METCALF 


CONCORD,  N.  H. 

THE  RUMFORD  PRESS 

1910 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

A  Deceiver 36 

A  Gentleman 65 

A  Glance 74 

A  Kiss  Before  You  Go 31 

A  Little  Girl's  Prayer 118 

Along  Life's  Thoroughfare 17 

A  Many-Hued  Tale        99 

Any  Kind  o'  Weather 44 

A  Prayer 35 

April 47 

As  Winter  Winds  Are  Blowing     .     .     .     .115 

Autumn  Joys 54 

Beneath  Her  Parasol 103 

Blonde  and  Brunette 100 

Bromfield  Street 3 

Christmas  Bells 66 

Conceit  and  Humility 12 

Dartmouth 87 

Despair  Not 107 

Devotion 24 

Don't  Freeze 51 

iii 


CONTENTS 

Easter  Song 48 

Edgar  Allan  Poe 30 

Evening  Star 28 

February 41 

Forever  and  Forever 13 

Frank  L.  Stanton       27 

Fruit  Salad  for  Two        96 

George  Sewall  Boutwell 78 

George  T.  Angell        79 

Going  Home  for  Christmas 59 

Good  Night 121 

Grieve  Not        69 

Halcyon        92 

Hats  Off  to  Baby  Brown 97 

In  Mabel's  Muff 19 

In  the  Maytime 49 

In  Winter 40 

Jefferson 81 

Just  a  Touch  of  Winter 62 

Kindness 116 

Kind  Words 61 

Little  Miss  Pink 25 

Love  is  All 95 

Love  Song 72 

March 43 

Mark  Twain     . 32 

Mary,  in  the  Rain 26 


CONTENTS 

May  Musings 73 

Mistaken  Identity 82 

My  Wish 75 

Never  Meet  Trouble  Half  Way   ....  91 

"Not  Yet,  But  Soon" 45 

November 57 

October 55 

"Old  Ironsides" 117 

On  a  Rainy  Day 56 

On  the  Lake 37 

On  the  "L"  to  Sullivan  Square        ...  7 

Orchid  and  Wild  Rose 112 

Out  of  the  Deep 14 

Over  the  Seas  to  Daylight  Land       ...  21 

Patrick  A.  Collins 77 

Questionings 70 

Roses       11 

Service 67 

Sphinx 88 

St.  Valentine 106 

Sunset 108 

Sweet  Louisburg  Square 5 

Thanksgiving 58 

"The  Boys" 109 

The  Bookshelves  of  Cornhill 9 

The  Boundaries  of  Love's  Day    ....  33 

The  Call  of  the  Fields 53 

V 


CONTENTS 

The  Call  of  the  Here-and-Now    .     .     .     .111 

The  College  Clock 85 

The  Dreamer  and  the  Toiler 15 

The  Old  and  the  New 76 

The  Passing  of  George  F.  Hoar   ....  34 

The  Relief  of  San  Francisco 29 

The  Scarlet  Salvia 23 

Time  Flies 39 

To  a  Geranium 16 

Transformed 42 

'Twixt  Buttercups  and  Daisies     ....  50 

Two  Streams 71 

Underneath  the  Harbor 93 

Up  the  Pathway  of  Pain 20 

War  Song 105 

Washington 80 

Which?                                                            .  104 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


STRAY   NOTES  OF  SONG 


BROMFIELD  STREET 

BROMFIELD  Street,  oh,  Bromfield  Street, 
The  dusks  and  dawns  of  old 
Sent  'twixt  the  walls  of  thy  retreat 

Their  greetings,  gray  and  gold; 
The  centuries  have  left  thee  there, 

Pressed  to  the  city's  heart — 
A  thoroughfare  beyond  compare, 
Oh,  Bromfield  Street,  thou  art! 

Bromfield  Street,  oh,  Bromfield  Street, 

Thy  stretch  is  but  a  span 
Between  two  tides  of  trampling  feet— 

The  toil  and  moil  of  man — 
But  restful  charms  thy  walks  endear, 

That  words  may  not  define, 
So  quaintly  queer  an  atmosphere, 

Oh,  Bromfield  Street,  is  thine! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Bromfield  Street,  oh,  Bromfield  Street. 

The  lips  of  Lore  and  Art 
Breathe  from  thy  windows,  strangely  sweet, 

A  whisper  to  my  heart. 
Broad  avenues,  in  splendor  dressed, 

Adorn  the  modern  day; 
But  mayst  thou  rest  in  Boston's  breast, 

Oh,  Bromfield  Street,  for  aye! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


SWEET  LOUISBURG  SQUARE 

O    HEART  of   old   Boston,  sweet  Louis- 
burg  Square, 
Thy  birds    are   all  singing,  there's    balm   in 

the  air; 
And  a  message  of  peace  from  the  dim  days  of 

yore 
Is  borne  to  my  soul  in  thine  elms,  bending  o'er. 

Like  a  cloister  of  ancient  and  mystical  years, 
Shut  out  from  the  world,  from  its  cares  and  its 

fears, 

Thy  memories  linger  to  soothe  the  sore  heart; 
To  bid,  for  a  moment,  life's  sorrows  depart. 

To    catch   from    thy    zephyrs    their   whisper, 

serene, 

The  stranger  fain  pauses;  it  captivates  e'en 
The  sad,  white-capped  nurses  who  greet  thee 

each  day 
From  the  haven  of  mercy,  just  over  the  way. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Ah,  soft  is  thy  greensward,  'neath  shadows  that 

fall 

From  wings  of  the  evening;  and  when,  over  all, 
The  stars  twinkle  kindly,  what  vision  more 

fair! 
0  heart  of  Old  Boston,  sweet  Louisburg  Square. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


ON   THE   "L"   TO   SULLIVAN   SQUARE 

OH,  WE  crowd  and  jostle  and  push  and 
shove — 

There's  always  room  for  one  more — 
We  hang  for  dear  life  from  the  straps  above, 

We  cut  fancy  curves  on  the  floor; 
We  tumble  headforemost  into  the  crush, 

We  plunge  and  we  dive  "for  fair," 
We  join  in  a  great  big  football  rush 
On  the  "L"  to  Sullivan  Square. 

From  station  to  station  we  swing  and  swerve — 

It's  very  like  "shooting  the  chutes  "- 
Plunge  forward,  then  backward,  as  round  each 
curve 

The  train  on  the  long  trestle  scoots. 
If  you  happen  to  hug  the  girl  by  your  side, 

For  her  to  protest  is  not  fair, 
For  you  never  can  tell  what  you'll  do  when 
you  ride 

On  the  "L"  to  Sullivan  Square. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

And    the   banker   stands   with   his   shoulders 
pressed 

To  those  of  the  laborer  grim; 
The  callow  youth  joins  in  a  casual  jest 

With  the  sales-girl  next  to  him; 
The  matron  be-bundled  with  bargains  fine 

Looks  in  vain  for  a  seat  to  spare; 
If  I  weren't  pinned  down  I'd  offer  her  mine, 

On  the  "L"  to  Sullivan  Square. 

And  the  journey  through  life,  it  is  much  the 
same — 

It's  jostle  and  crowd  all  the  way, 
As  onward  we're  hurried,  with  riches  and  fame 

The  incidents,  mere,  of  a  day. 
The  terminal  looms  up  larger  ahead 

Each  moment;  but  why  should  we  care? 
There'll  be  others  to  ride,  when  we  are  all 
dead, 

On  the  "L"  to  Sullivan  Square. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


THE    BOOKSHELVES    OF    CORNHILL 

OCOME  for  a  moment  away  with  me 
From  the  city's  rush  and  roar; 
Get  out  of  the  surge  of  humanity 
As  it  sweeps  from  door  to  door 
And  catch  a  breath  of  the  olden  time, 

A  glimpse  of  the  past  that  will 
Set  soul  and  senses  again  in  rhyme, 
'Neath  the  bookshelves  of  Cornhill. 

Let  us  greet  the  poets  of  long  ago; 

Old  barristers,  stern  and  just; 
Historians  grim,  whom  the  Muses  know; 

Philosophers,  gray  with  dust; 
There's  a  touch  of  peace  in  their  mute  array. 

An  indescribable  thrill 
As  we  bow  to  the  masters  who  hold  sway 

On  the  bookshelves  of  Cornhill. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

In  far  distant  fields  in  coming  years 

My  lot  it  may  be  to  tread — 
Perchance  there'll  be  joys  to  banish  the  tears 

And  fortune  may  smile  o'erhead — 
But  where'er  the  future  may  write  me  down, 

I'll  ne'er  be  content  until 
Fate  pilots  me  back  to  old  Boston  town, 

And  the  bookshelves  of  Cornhill. 


10 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


ROSES 

ROSES  in  the  woodland  byways, 
Roses  on  the  mountain  steeps, 
Roses  garlanding  the  highways, 

Roses  where  the  brooklet  creeps, 
Roses  in  the  garden,  breathing 

Incense  rare  for  you  and  me; 
Roses  on  the  trellis,  wreathing 

Bower  for  lovers'  reverie; 
Roses  in  the  East  at  breaking 

Of  the  dawn,  when  bird  songs  rise; 
Roses  with  the  sun's  leave-taking 

In  the  glow  of  western  skies; 
Roses  in  their  softest  glory 

In  the  blushes  of  the  bride — 
Roses  in  a  new  life-story, 

May  they  ever  there  abide — 
Roses  in  the  perfumed  kisses 

Of  the  zephyrs  of  the  night; 
Roses  in  the  dreamful  blisses 

Of  a  slumber-garden  white; 
Roses  in  all  life  unfolding — 

Petals  may  be  falling  soon — 
Roses  ours  for  the  beholding, 

Roses  of  the  joy  of  June. 


11 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


CONCEIT  AND  HUMILITY 

TWO  mortals  climbed  a  mountain  top,  to 
view 

The  wide  outstretch  of  the  majestic  world; 
Beneath  them  boundless  vistas,  old  and  new, 

In  circling  panorama  were  unfurled — 
And  one,  as  he  beheld  the  equal  zone 

On  every  hand  to  merge  of  earth  and  sky, 
Exclaimed,  in  lordly  and  exultant  tone: 
"The  centre  of  the  universe  am  I!" 

The  other,  awed  and  silent,  long  surveyed 

The  wonders  of  the  scene;  the  towns  of  men 
Were  dwarfed  to  ant  hills,  and  the  rivers  made 

But  threads  of  silver  winding  far,  and  when 
He  felt  the  thrill  of  grandeur  filling  all 

Of  earth  revealed  beneath  the  bending  sky, 
His  humbled  soul  could  only  cry,  "How  small, 

How  helpless  in  Thy  sight,  O  God,  am  I!" 


12 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


FOREVER  AND  FOREVER 

OUR  little  loves  may  pass  away, 
As  fragile  heart-strings  sever; 
But  each  dawn  brings  a  sweeter  day, 
For  Love  is  Love  forever. 

The  little  gods  of  time-worn  creeds 
Die,  neath  the  world's  endeavor; 

But  lives  the  grandeur  of  good  deeds, 
For  God  is  God  forever. 


13 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


OUT  OF  THE  DEEP 

FROM  out  the  heaving  bosom  of  the  deep 
The  waves  sweep  o'er  the  rim  of  shining 

sand; 
High  and  yet  higher  the  tidal  surges  creep 

As  eager  lips  of  Ocean  kiss  the  land; 
And  then  a  thousand  rills,  their  strength  full 

spent, 

Bear  back  the  weary  waters  to  the  sea, 
Once  more  with  the  eternal  to  be  blent, 
Once  more  a  part  of  the  immensity! 

So  doth  not  clearly  in  this  token  shine 

The  secret,  and  the  solace,  of  thy  soul? 
Like  unto  ocean  is  the  Power  Divine, 

Each  feeble  life  a  radiant  of  the  Whole. 
E'en  as  from  out  the  vast,  unchanging  Source 

Thy  being  flows,  its  transitory  tide 
Will  bear  thee  back,  one  writh  the  living  Force 

Wherein  th'  eternal  verities  abide! 


14 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


THE    DREAMER    AND    THE    TOILER 

ONE  dreamed  of  glory  in  the  coming  years, 
And  waited  for  his  dream  to  be  fulfilled — 
One  toiled  along  a  pathway  wet  with  tears, 
To  do  the  drudging  task  that  fate  had  willed. 

One  saw  the  golden  hours  pass  idly  by 
Until  the  promise  of  his  youth  was  dead; 

While  he  who  strove  beneath  a  frowning  sky 
Looked  up,  and  saw  Fame's  lode-star  over 
head. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


TO  A  GERANIUM 

GERANIUM,  beauteous  with  the  glow  of 
many  blooms  in  one, 
Flower  most  beloved  that  in  my  garden 

grows, 
Redder  than  heart's  blood,  thy  day  has  just 

begun 

When  it  is  saddened  by  the  dying  rose, 
And  brilliancy  left  o'er  from  summer's  noon. 
Is  still  thine  own  when  late  the  aster  wakes. 

Full  many  a  fickle,  fragile  blossom,  in  the  boon 
Of    one    rare    breath    of   fleeting    fragrance 

breaks, 
Then   vanishes;   but  thou,  from  glad  June's 

jubilee 

Until  the  Autumn  whispers  of  the  end, 
In  soft  bestowal  of  thy  spiced  perfume,  art 

constancy, 
Oh,  flower  of  all  that  blow,  the  truest  friend! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


ALONG  LIFE'S  THOROUGHFARE 

FACES  artful,  avaricious, 
Faces  buoyant,  faces  bright; 
Faces  crafty  and  capricious, 

Faces  dimpling  with  delight; 
Faces  eager  and  entrancing, 

Faces  fair  and  faces  free; 
Faces  glad  and  gaily  glancing, 

Faces  homely  as  can  be; 
Faces  which  the  "I"  rules  blindly 

Faces,  jaded,  joyful,  too; 
Faces  keen  and  faces  kindly, 

Faces  laughing  up  at  you; 
Faces  mournful,  faces  modest. 

Faces  narrow,  faces  nil; 
Faces  oh,  the  very  oddest, 

Faces  pinched  and  puerile; 
Faces  queer  and  faces  queenly, 

Faces  radiant  and  rare; 
Fades  sweet,  that  smile  serenely, 

Faces  of  triumphant  air; 


17 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Faces  ugly  and  uncheery, 

Faces  vexed  and  faces  vain; 
Faces  worn  and  wan  and  weary: 

Faces  experts  can't  explain; 
Faces  yawning,  faces  yearning, 

Faces  zealous  all  the  way — 
Faces  in  whose  lines  we're  learning 

New  life  lessons  every  day, 


18 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


IN  MABEL'S  MUFF 

WITHIN  the  warmth  of  Mabel's  muff 
You'll    find    all    sorts    and   styles   of 

stuff— 

A  kerchief  with  a  hand- wrought  hem; 
A  glove  or  two — What  need  of  them! 
A  dainty  purse  that's  passing  stout, 
With  pa's  allowance  fattened  out; 
A  veil,  that  half  conceals  the  grace, 
Ofttimes,  of  Mabel's  pretty  face; 
A  billet  doux,  the  last  from  Ned, 
That  must  be  o'er  and  o'er  reread — 
And  just  as  though  that  weren't  enough, 
Two  soft,  white  hands — in  Mabel's  muff. 


1U 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


UP  THE  PATHWAY  OF  PAIN 

\   JAGGED  path  of  pain  she  trod, 
•**•     This  little  mate  of  mine, 
And  yet  she  journeyed  nearest  God, 

With  dauntless  soul  a-shine, 
For,  all  the  stern  and  sterile  way, 

Uplifted  were  her  eyes, 
Reflecting  buoyantly  the  day 

Or  starlight  of  the  skies; 
And  e'er,  a-down  dim  distances, 

She  was  the  first  who  heard, 
With  trustful  ear,  the  messages 

Of  some  hope-singing  bird ! 


20 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


OVER  THE  SEAS  TO  DAYLIGHT  LAND 

LITTLE  lips  smiling  the  sweetness  of  rest; 
Little  eyes  closed  by  the  magic  of  sleep; 
Lulled  by  a  song  from  a  fond  mother's  breast, 

A  Little  Boy  starts  o'er  an  ocean  deep. 
Pushing  from  shore  'neath  the  veil  of  the  dark, 

Dream  sailors  over  him  guardingly  stand — 
No  craft  so  staunch  as  his  crib  of  a  bark 
For  the  wonderful  voyage  to  Daylight  Land. 

Marvelous  visions  around  him  unfold 

As  glides  his  trim  vessel  out  into  the  foam. 
Fairyland  shores  lined  with  sea-shells  of  gold, 

Castles  where  doll-kings  and  queens  are  at 

home. 
Rainbow-hued  islands  o'errunning  with  toys, 

Tin  soldiers  marching  behind  a  tin  band — 
Oh !  what  a  treat  is  our  good  Little  Boy's 

As  he  speeds  to  the  portals  of  Daylight  Land ! 

21 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Angel  wings  sheltering  all  the  night  through, 

Flutter  above  the  soft,  shadowy  sails; 
Man-in-the-Moon  soon  is  smiling  adieu, 

Star  overhead  into  nothingness  pales. 
Bird  songs  proclaim  a  new  welcome  from  shore, 

Sun-gems  are  blazing  in  crescents  of  sand — 
Little  Boy's  eyes  are  wide  open  once  more, 

All  safe  in  the  harbor  of  Daylight  Land ! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


THE  SCARLET  SALVIA 

THE  Summer,  loth  to  take  her  leave  with 
out  some  token  tender, 
Lest  millions  who've  made  merry  may  re 
gard  the  future  drear, 
Calls  forth  from  fruitful   Mother  Earth  the 

brightest  she   can  render, 
And  leaves  the  scarlet  salvia  as  emblem  of 
good  cheer, 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


DEVOTION 

HERE  are  no  words  that  e'en  in  sweetest 
-•-       song 
Could  bear  to  thee  the  tributes  of  my 

heart, 
That  eagerly  unto  my  dumb  lips  throng 

Yet  cannot  pass  beyond,  so  beautiful  thou 

art! 
And  so,  when  God  seems  nearest,  and  on  high 

Has  set  the  kind  star-tokens  of  his  care, 
I  thank  him  for  his  love,  and  silently 

Pay  thee  the  tribute  of  my  soul,  its  purest 
prayer ! 


t4 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


LITTLE  MISS  PINK 

I'VE  known  her  now  for  most  a  year, 
This  little  Miss  Pink,  whose  cheeks  are 

red; 

I  hold  no  other  maid  so  dear — 
She's  turned  my  head! 

She's  bantered  me  and  laughed  at  me, 
This  little  Miss  Pink,  whose  hair  is  gold, 

And  been  as  cross  as  cross  could  be — 
The  winsome  scold! 

But  she's  aware  I'm  willing  quite, 

This  little  Miss  Pink,  whose  eyes  are  blue, 

To  do  her  bidding  day  and  night 
And  still  be  true! 

And  who  can  say  that  I'm  the  fool, 

Though  little  Miss  Pink,  whose  ways  are 
free, 

Is  arrogant,  and  sometimes  cool? 
She's  only  three! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


MARY,  IN  THE  RAIN 

A  MOST  appealing  picture  is 
Miss  Mary,  in  the  rain; 
She  fills  my  soul  with  rhapsodies, 

Does  Mary,  in  the  rain, 
For  when  the  sun  is  beaming  bright 
Her  eyes  send  forth  reflected  light, 
A  dower  that's  all  the  world's  by  right; 

But  Mary,  in  the  rain, 
Bears  her  own  sunshine  in  her  face, 
That  brightens  all  the  gloom  with  grace. 
Ah,  ever  in  my  heart  there's  place 

For  Mary,  wet  with  rain! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


FRANK  L.  STANTON 

BARD  of  the  Southland,  blest  with  ken 
Of  Nature's  heart,  and  the  hearts  of  men, 
Thanks  for  thy  sweet,  clear  notes  that  bear 
The  message  of  Love  from  the  everywhere — 
The  story  that  breathes  in  the  hum  of  bees, 
The  song  of  birds,  and  the  budding  trees; 
The  lesson  of  life  that  Heaven  has  set 
In  the  frail,  unfolding  violet! 
Singer  of  peace  unto  souls  oppressed, 
Singer  of  hope  unto  hearts  distressed, 
Singer  of  Love !    May  thy  years  be  long, 
And  sweet  as  thy  tenderest  notes  of  song ! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


EVENING  STAR 

EVENING  Star,  thou  jewel  gleaming 
In  the  rose-pearl  west, 
E'en  at  dusk  thine  eye  is  beaming 

On  the  river's  breast. 
Many  who  have  known  but  sorrow 

In  the  ebbing  day, 
Catch  a  hope-gleam  for  the  morrow 

In  thy  kindly  ray; 
And  with  glooms  of  night  descending, 

Brightening  afar, 
Pledge  of  God's  blest  care  unending 

Thou  art,  Evening  Star! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


THE  RELIEF  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO 

OUT  of  the  deeps  of  the  earth,  unwarned, 
the  shock  of  ruin  came; 
Out  of  a  city's    seething  wreck    a    thousand 

tongues  of  flame. 

Out  of  the  woe — for  a  moment  mere — the  im 
pulse  of  despair; 
Out  of  the  uncrushed  spirit  then,  new  hope,  on 

the  wings  of  prayer. 
Out  of  the  East,  and  the  North  and  South  the 

messengers  of  weal; 
Out  of  man's  stores  the  answer  to  the  homeless 

one's  appeal. 
Out  of  man's  love  an  angel's  smile  above  the 

stricken  sod; 
Out  of  the  depths  of  a  Nation's  heart  the 

providence  of  God! 


29 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


EDGAR  ALLAN  POE 

OH,  POET  of  tempest  skies  and  bodings 
dark, 

Weaver  of  weird  and  wondrous  fantasy, 
A  hundred  years  have  vanished  since  the  spark 

Of  thy  charmed  life  gleamed  first  in  infancy, 
For  scarce  twoscore  to  blaze,  and  then  expire 

Ere  men  could  comprehend,  or  homage  pay — 
Mysterious  master  of  Parnassian  fire, 

For  whom  is  now  Fame's  choicest  wreath  of 

bay! 
A  hundred  years  in  the  relentless  sweep 

Of  time,  the  handmaid  of  oblivion — 
Yet  treasured  in  its  soul,  the  world  shall  keep 

The  jewels  of  thy  genius,  every  one! 
Still  shall  the  melancholy  "Raven"  croak 

Its  doleful  message  down  the  centuries; 
"The  Bells,"  clear  as  when  first  their  rhythm 
broke 

On  awe-struck  ears,  shall  peal  across  all  seas, 
And  "Helen's"  beauty,  radiant  as  the  sun, 

Shall  beam  refulgent  until  Love  is  done! 


80 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


A  KISS  BEFORE  YOU  GO 

A  KISS  before  you  go." 
The  toss  of  a  golden  head; 
The  notes  of  a  lullaby,  soft  and  low— 
And  away  to  bed. 

"A  kiss  before  you  go." 

A  youth  at  the  call  of  life; 
A  sigh  and  a  sob,  she  loves  him  so — 
And  away  to  strife. 

"A  kiss  before  you  go." 

And  a  wrinkled  forehead,  pressed 
By  devoted  lips  as  the  tears  o'erflow — 
And  away  to  rest. 


si 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


MARK  TWAIN 

GREAT,  gentle   friend  of  all   our  human 
kind, 
The  muffled  heart-beat  of  the  whole  world 

tells 

Of  grief  that  surges  deep  and  unconfined, 
Of  pain  a  more  than  kingly  loss  compels ! 

We  laughed  with  you  from  fleeting  year  to 
year, 

Our  lives  uplifted  by  your  message  true; 
For  in  each  cloud,  with  eye  of  changeless  cheer, 

You  found  a  gleam  of  silver,  shining  through ! 

Good-bye!     We  grieve,  but  treasured  we  will 

keep 

Your  memory  in  all  the  afterwhile; 
You've  shown  us  e'en,  as  you  lay  down  to 

sleep, 
That  death  is  not  a  shadow,  but  a  smile ! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


THE    BOUNDARIES    OF    LOVE'S    DAY 

THE  scent  of  a  rose  from  a  garden  fair; 
The  diamonds  of  the  dew; 
A  bird-song's  thrill  in  the  morning  air — 
And  sweet  thoughts  of  you ! 

A  glint  of  gold  on  the  rim  of  the  West; 

The  star- gems  in  the  blue; 
The  night  wind  soothing  the  world  to  rest — 

And  sweet  dreams  of  you ! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


THE   PASSING   OF   GEORGE   F.   HOAR 

A  NATION  grieves  for  him  whose  ebbing 
life 

Has  lent  so  much  of  glory  to  the  State — 
Not  by  the  empty  grandeur  born  of  strife, 
But  by  the  noblest  works  of  peace  made 
great. 

Statesman  and  patriot,  scholar,  seer  and  sage, 
A  people's  tribune  in  long,  trying  years : 

Yet  not  for  name  writ  high  on  honor's  page — 
For  his  pure,  lofty  manhood  are  our  tears. 

His  simple  faith  abiding  to  the  end, 

He  waits,  content,  the  summons  from  on 
high. 

Rounded,  complete  his  day:  as  shades  descend 
He  shows  the  world  how  grand  it  is  to  die. 


84 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


A  PRAYER 

I  KNOW  not  if  reward  of  gold 
Shall  bless  my  labors  in  life's  day; 
I  care  not  if  the  shadows  hold 

Their  canopies  across  my  way 
So  long  as,  groping  toward  the  light, 
My  heart  is  right. 

I  heed  not  what  the  tongues  of  men 
May  have  for  me  in  Time's  report; 

The  balance  will  be  cast  again, 

And  justice  from  the  Higher  Court 

Exalt  at  last,  with  radiance  new, 

The  soul  that's  true. 

So,  Father,  in  the  storm  and  strife 
That  sternly  may  encompass  me, 

Unselfish  make  my  way  of  life, 
And  make  my  law  humility; 

This  to  the  journey's  end,  and  then 

Thy  peace.    Amen ! 


w 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 

A  DECEIVER 

ITHIN  the  shadows  of  a  wood 

I  chanced  at  sunset's  glow; 
A  bubbling  spring 
Was  murmuring, 
And  in  delight 
A  water-sprite 
Was  beckoning  below. 

"Oh,  may  I,  maid,"  I  madly  cried, 
"But  kiss  thy  laughing  lips?" 
Then  sweetly  smiled 
This  creature  wild, 
And  tossed  the  spray 
In  teasing  play 
With  fairy  fingertips. 

But  soon  she  nodded  sweet  assent, 
And  kneeling  at  the  brink, 
I  sought  the  place 
Where  beamed  her  face; 
The  false  nymph  laughed, 
And  I  but  quaffed 
Indignantly — a  drink! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


ON  THE  LAKE 

'  f  I  ^IS  moonlight  on  the  lake, 

A      And  through  the  air 
The  zephyrs  from  their  mountain  haunts  are 
flying; 

From  rush  and  brake 
The  drone  of  insects  in  prolonged  replying 

Floats  everywhere. 

'Tis  nature's  lullaby, 

And  evening's  calm 
Lends  to  the  heart  the  peace  of  blessedness; 

And  far  and  nigh 
Is  felt  the  thrill  of  beauty's  soft  caress 

With  buoyant  charm. 

The  diamond  canopy 

Of  Heaven  above 
Paints  mellow  radiance  on  the  water's  breast; 

The  reverie 
Of  gentle  nature  in  unruffled  rest 

Tells  naught  but  love. 

87 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Dead  is  the  world  of  strife; 

'Tis  mem'ry's  hour, 
And  silently  the  faces  of  the  past, 

As  once  in  life 
Come  back — too  precious  and  too  pure  to  last, 

With  'nobling  power. 

'Tis  midnight  on  the  lake — 

The  hours  have  flown — 
The  dream  of  peaceful  things  at  last  must  end. 

Dark  clouds  o'ertake 
The  dying  moon.     The  glooms  of  night  descend 

To  claim  their  own. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


TIME  FLIES 

I 

GRIEVING,  she  gives  up  her  cherished  toys 
As  bed-time  approaches  to  end  her  play, 
For  bright  is  the  day  with  its  rollicking  joys — 
The  flashing  hours,  oh,  where  are  they? 

II 

Gone  are  the  roses  that  bloomed  so  rare 
In  the  scented  garden  of  Love's  sweet  day, 

And  she  sighs  for  the  spring-time  of  youth  so 

fair — 
The  flying  seasons,  where  are  they? 

Ill 

Her  eyes  grown  dim,  and  falt'ring  her  feet, 
She  sadly  looks  back  o'er  the  length'ning 
way; 

The  shadows  are  falling,  and  life  is  so  sweet — 
The  fleeting  years,  oh,  where  are  they? 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


IN  WINTER 

CRISP  and  sparkling  is  the  air, 
Breezes  playing  hide  and  seek 
With  her  curls  and  roses,  rare, 

Painted  on  each  maiden's  cheek; 
Everybody  shouts  the  praise 
Of  Winter  days. 

Logs  piled  high  and  hearth  aglow, 
Cheer  for  all,  and  mirth  is  king — 

Now  we  ride  across  the  snow. 
Now  a  dance  is  just  the  thing; 

Nothing  like  the  keen  delights 
Of  Winter  nights. 

Spring  has  many  charms,  'tis  true, 
Bird  and  bloom  and  running  rill; 

Summer  brings  her  blessings,  too; 
Autumn  is  a  queen — but  still 

Best  beloved  by  girls  and  boys 
Are  Winter  joys. 


40 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


FEBRUARY 

HEIR  of  the  snows,  child  of  the  wintry 
blast, 

Too  few  have  sounded  thy  full  meed  of  praise; 
In  station  bare  and  bleak  thy  lot  is  cast, 

And  aught  but  gentle  are  thy  fitful  ways; 
Yet  unto  human  hearts  and  hearths  thou  hast 
Sent  cheer  unrivalled  in  the  log  fire's  blaze, 
And  so  to  hold  the  faith  of  weaklings  fast 
Set  Spring's  sweet  promise  in  thy  length'n- 
ing  days. 


41 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


TRANSFORMED 

A  GLOOMY  orchard,  stark  and  bare  and 
brown, 
A   night  of   stinging  winds   and   swirls   of 

snow; 

A  golden  dawn,  and  white  trees,  loaded  down 
With  many  million  diamonds  aglow! 


4f 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


MARCH 

COME  on,  you  boist'rous,  madcap  herald  of 
the  Spring. 
We  welcome  you  with  all  your  blow  and 

bluster; 

Sweep  out  the  refuse  of  old  Winter's  gathering 
And  rage  with  all  the  breath  that  you  can 

muster! 
We  know  that  underneath  your  rude  and  rough 

demean 
Are  throbs  of  warm  regard  and  thrills  of 

laughter; 
You  melt  the  sunlight's  gold,  and  lay  a  path  of 

green 
For  violet-eyed  young  April,  who  comes  after. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


ANY  KIND  O'  WEATHER 

ANY  kind  o'  weather 
Fills  the  bill  for  me; 
Glad  I'm  livin',  whether 
Rain  or  shine  it  be. 

What's  the  use  complainin'? 

Everybody  knows 
When  it's  right-down  rainin' 

Redder  is  the  rose. 

Think  the  birds  are  sobbin' 
'Cause  the  sun  is  gone? 

Ask  your  friend,  the  robin, 
Bathin'  on  the  lawn. 

See  him  shake  his  feathers — 
Happy?    Yes,  siree! 

An'  any  kind  o'  weather's 
Good  enough  for  me! 


44 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


"NOT  YET— BUT  SOON" 

(A  Reverie  of  Spring) 

XJOT  yet,  but  soon,  the  roses  will  be  bloom- 
-^      ing, 

And  poets  will  be  singing  of  sweet  June; 
The  deadly  cannon  cracker  will  be  booming, 

For  July  Fourth  is  here — not  yet,  but  soon. 
The  lean  mosquito  is  not  dead,  but  sleeping — 

Not  yet,  but  soon,  he'll  make  his  yearly  call; 
The  house-fly  his  engagement  will  be  keeping, 

Not  yet,  but  soon  enough,  I'm  sure,  for  all. 

Not  yet,  but  soon,  the  Summer  Girl,  in  glory, 

Will  reign  again  as  queen  of  all  the  shore; 
The  Hall-Room  boys  will  weave  the  same  old 
story — 

A  fortnight's  romance,  then  back  to  the  store. 
Not  yet,  but  soon,  the  hotel  man  wrill  chuckle 

And  count  his  profits  every  afternoon 
While  you  and  I  wyill  swelter,  as  we  knuckle 

Down  to  our  same  old  jobs,  not  yet,  but  soon. 

45 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Not  yet,  but  soon,  the  Common  Man,  despair 
ing, 

Will  cut  out  eating,  that  he  may  buy  ice, 
And  sell  his  household  furniture,  preparing 

To  pay  for  anthracite  a  triple  price. 
Not  yet,  but  soon,  the  clamor  of  campaigning 

Will  fill  the  land  where  dwell  the  noble  free; 
Not  yet,  but  soon,  the  new  year  will  be  waning; 

Not  yet,  but  soon — time's  up  for  you  and  me. 


46 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


APRIL 

OMES  April  with  a  violet 

A-nodding  on  her  breast; 
Ah,  could  I  pen  a  triolet 
To  April  and  her  violet 
With  rarest  beauty  blest! 
Smiles  gleam  thro'   tears  at  her  behest. 
Comes  April  with  a  violet 
A-nodding  on  her  breast. 


47 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


EASTER  SONG 

LIFT  up  your  faces  to  the  skies, 
O  all  ye  sons  of  men, 
And  let  your  hearts  in  joy  arise 
Exultantly  again ! 

Attune  yourselves  unto  the  songs 
The  great  bird-chorus  sings; 

Forget  the  winter  of  your  wrongs 
And  give  your  sorrows  wings ! 

Throw  back  the  shutters  of  your  souls, 

Let  in  the  golden  light 
That  from  the  regal  sun  unrolls 

Upon  the  year's  long  night ! 

All  nature  smiles;  the  glad  earth  gives 
New  verdure  to  the  sward; 

In  every  blade  and  blossom  lives 
The  glory  of  the  Lord ! 


48 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


IN  THE  MAYTIME 

LOSE  your  grumbles  and  your  glooms  in  a 
maze  of  cherry  blooms; 
Banish  all  your  petty  troubles  on  a  bird- 
note  floating  far. 
Let  your  worries  meet  their  dooms  in  the  magic 

of  perfumes 
That  are  waiting  to  entice  you  where  the 

honeysuckles  are; 
For  a  newborn  gladness  gleams  in  the  sparkle  of 

the  streams, 
And  balm -laden  breezes  bid  you  breathe  the 

fulness  of  the  day; 
In  the   sun's   alluring   beams   is  the  glint  of 

golden  dreams 

Of  the  glory  of  the  Springtime,  in  the  ecstasy 
of  May. 


49 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


'TWIXT    BUTTERCUPS    AND    DAISIES 

OH,  life  is  fair  and  life  is  free 
In  all  its  fleeting  phases, 
As  down  the  lane  she  walks  with  me, 
'Twixt  buttercups  and  daisies. 

High  in  the  branches  of  each  tree 
The  birds  proclaim  her  praises; 

Oh,  all  is  joy  and  jubilee, 

'Twixt  buttercups  and  daisies. 

For,  drawing  closely  unto  me, 

Her  tender  eyes  she  raises, 
And  says  that  mine  she'll  ever  be — 

'Twixt  buttercups  and  daisies. 


«o 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


DON'T  FREEZE 

(A  July  Jingle) 

HOW  chillingly  the  wintry  blast 
Adown  the  chimney  whistles, 
And  how  the  ice-fringe,  clinging  fast, 

From  snow-bound  roof -tree  bristles! 
Old  Boreas  is  stern  tonight, 
But  what  care  I  for  zero? 
I'll  pile  the  hearth  with  logs  alight 
And  riddle,  a  la  Nero ! 

P.  S. — 'Twas  some  six  months  ago 

The  tale  above  was  written; 
Don't  start  your  furnace  fire;  oh  no, 

You  will  not  get  frost  bitten. 

How  stingingly  the  swirl  of  snow 

Greets  our  reluctant  faces! 
The  mercury  is  shrinking  low — 

Down  toward  the  bulb  it  races. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

But  what  care  we,  enwrapped  in  furs, 
As  sleighbells  crisply  jingle? 

He  is  a  weakling  who  demurs, 
Though  ears  and  fingers  tingle. 

P.  S. — The  rhyme  preceding  grew 
Last  Winter,  do  not  doubt  it. 

Don't  get  your  ulster  out,  for  you 
Can  get  along  without  it. 


fli 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


THE  CALL  OF  THE  FIELDS 

THE  clovered  fields  of  rippling  green 
Cry  "Health  to  him  who  comes." 
Ah,  sad  are  they  who  ne'er  have  seen 
The  clovered  fields  of  rippling  green. 
Canst  thou  not  make  a  day  serene 

For  some  child  of  the  slums? 
The  clovered  fields  of  rippling  green 
Cry  "Health  to  him  who  comes." 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


AUTUMN  JOYS 

OH,  THESE  are  the  glorious  Autumn  days, 
The  golden  crown  of  the  year; 
'Tis  now  that  my  heart  is  full  of  praise, 
(And  my  furnace  out  of  gear). 

The  songs  of  the  harvest  fill  the  land; 

Soft  haze  o'er  the  hillside  floats; 
There  are  no  flaws  in  the  landscape  grand, 

(No  bargains  in  overcoats). 

The  smile  of  plenty  is  in  the  sky; 

There's  joy  in  the  human  soul; 
The  blood  in  my  veins  in  bounding  high, 

(And  so  is  the  price  of  coal). 


54 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


OCTOBER 

SHE'S  glad,  not  sober  nor  sad  October, 
Her  song  is  a  song  of  cheer; 
Gauzes  of  red  and  of  russet  robe  her 

As  radiant  queen  of  the  year. 
Torch  of  the  sumach  is  lifted  to  light  her 

Fair  feet  o'er  the  harvest  sod — 
And  ever  was  badge  of  a  sovereign  brighter 

Than  sceptre  of  goldenrod? 
The  breadth  of  her  bounty  all  nature  embraces; 

She  kindles  men's  hearts  with  bliss; 
So  beauteous  her  face  is,  the  Summer  retraces 

Her  footsteps  for  just  one  kiss ! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


ON  A  RAINY  DAY 

THE  heavens,  o'ercast,  shut  out  the  sun, 
And  shadows  fall,  e'er  day  is  done. 

But  what  though  rain  its  gloom  imparts — 
The  love-flame  gleams  in  human  hearts. 

And  when  the  dark  is  deepest  here 

The  true  soul-light  shines  out  most  clear. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


NOVEMBER 

THEY  call  thee  drear,  and  sad,  and  desolate; 
Of  all  the  family  of  months  the  member 
Most  melancholy,  timing  thy  footsteps  late 
To  crush  to  death  the  last  faint,  glimmering 

ember, 

And  bid  mankind  bewail.    Nay;  by  good  fate 
Thou    com'st    to    bid    the    faltering    world 

remember; 

And  e'er  thy  days  are  sped,  full  hearts,  elate, 
Will  make  thee  master  of  the  feast,  Novem 
ber! 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


THANKSGIVING 

THANKS  for  life  and  thanks  for  light; 
Thanks  for  home  and  thanks  for  hope; 
Thanks  for  power  to  see  the  right; 

Thanks  for  strength  with  wrong  to  cope. 
Thanks  for  brightness  of  the  day; 

Thanks  for  God's  blest  care  at  night; 
Thanks  for  roses  by  the  way — 

Thanks  for  thorns,  lest  joy  should  blight. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


GOING  HOME  FOR  CHRISTMAS 

GOING  home  for  Christmas ! 
Joy  on  every  face, 
Thronging  to  the  stations — 

Quickened  is  each  pace; 
Quickened  are  the  heart-beats 

For  the  clasp  and  kiss 

That  shall  seal  re-union 

In  the  morrow's  bliss. 

Going  home  for  Christmas ! 

Speeding  miles  away; 
Father,  mother,  waiting 

For  their  own  today; 
White  though  snow-fields  glisten, 

Roses,  rich  and  rare, 
Bloom  in  hearts  of  dear  ones 

As  they  homeward  fare. 


59 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 

Going  home  for  Christmas, 

Where  the  love-hearth  gleams 
With  the  glow  of  pleasure 

In  the  olden  dreams; 
Going  home  for  Christmas 

As  the  waning  year 
Floods  the  souls  of  millions 

With  a  new-born  cheer. 


60 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


KIND  WORDS 

ONLY  a  sunbeam,  stealing 
Through  a  rift  in  a  sky  of  gray, 
Yet  the  face  of  God  revealing 
To  a  soul  'neath  sorrow's  sway. 

Only  a  kind  word  spoken 

To  a  heart  with  long  grieving  sore, 
Yet  mayhap  despair's  chain  broken 

In  some  life  forevermore! 


01 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


JUST    A    TOUCH    OF    WINTER    TORE 
THE  SPRING  COMES  IN 

WAN'T    it    fine    to    see    the    house-tops 
covered  deep  beneath  the  snow 
When    you  woke  up  in    the  mornin'  with 

the  sun  a-shinin'  bright? 
Yes,  it  was  a  reg'lar  blizzard;  my,  but  how  the 

wind  did  blow! 
Didn't  it  whistle  down  the  chimney,  like 

blue  blazes,  all  the  night? 
But  the  kids  was  in  their  glory,  tumblin'  in 

the  drifts  next  day; 
There  was  never  nothin'  like  it;  how  they 

made  the  snowballs  spin ! 
It  bestowed  a  hearty  flavor  to  their  headlong, 

pell-mell  play, 

Just  to  have  a  taste  of  W'inter,  'fore  the  Spring 
comes  in! 


62 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SO  NO 

Wan't  it  grand  up  on  the  common,  where  the 

fluffy  mantle,  white, 
Stretched  afar  in  all  directions,  resting  lightly 

on  the  trees? 
Didn't  it  set  you  clean  a-wonderin'  just  to  see 

so  strange  a  sight, 
With  the  shovel  brigade  a-workin'  like  a  lot 

o'  busy  bees? 
I  suppose  'twill  soon  be  over,  all  be  ended  like 

a  dream, 
For  the  sun  will  now  be  hustlin'  and  the 

drifts  a-vanishin'; 
But  it's  good  to  get  a  vision  of  the  old  times, 

just  a  gleam, 

Just  a  tiny  taste  of  Winter,  'fore  the  Spring 
comes  in. 


How  the  tingle  of  the  snowflakes  made  the  red 

cheeks  of  the  girls 
Redder  yet  with  health's  complexion,  and 

the  sparkle  in  their  eyes 
Brighter  with  the  glow  of  pleasure,   as  the 

breezes  tossed  their  curls, 
Tanglin'  up  their  truant  tresses  as  a  mis 
chievous  surprise! 

63 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

There  was  fun  for  old  and  young  ones;  every 
body  felt  the  thrill; 
Jack  hitched  up  his  big  old  cutter — bells 

kept  up  a  merry  din; 
Bill  got  out  his  double-runner,  shouts  resounded 

on  the  hill, 

For  one  tardy  touch  of  Winter,  'fore  the 
Spring  comes  in ! 


64 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


A  GENTLEMAN 

ARNEST,  sincere, 

In  friendship  strong, 
And  without  fear 
In  face  of  wrong; 

Quiet,  serene, 

A  student,  too, 
Who  makes  life  mean 

A  service  true; 

Knowing  his  mind; 

With  some  fixed  plan — 
Tis  here  you  find 

A  gentleman. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


QJOUND  for  us  all  the  knell  of  selfish  living, 
^— 1     Of  petty  jealousies  and  foolish  pride; 
Ring  in  the  day  of  faith  and  of  forgiving, 
O  Bells  of  Christmastide ! 

Of  larger  love  and  nobler  thought  the  paean, 
Ring  in  the  day  of  peace  that  shall  abide — 

Peace  to  the  glory  of  the  Galilean, 
O  Bells  of  Christmastide! 


66 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


SERVICE 

BUOYANT  and  bright  from  bubbling  spring 
The  brook  in  the  hills 
Its  rippling  rills 

Taught  all  the  livelong  day  to  sing: 
"Merry  and  young  and  gay  am  I 
And  on  to  the  sea  I  hasten  by." 

Over  the  rocks,  by  crag  and  dell 

With  gathering  strength 

It  coursed  at  length 
And  a  mill  was  built  where  its  waters  fell. 

With  prouder  tones  it  spake  again : 

"I  turn  the  wheels  and  work  for  men." 

On  through  the  valley,  broad  and  deep 

It  patiently  bore 

The  garnered  store 
From  fields  where  human  toilers  reap, 

And  grandly  its  message  came  once  more: 

"I  serve  content  till  life  is  o'er." 


67 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 

At  last,  majestic  and  complete, 

On  the  ocean's  breast 

It  found  its  rest 
Where  all  the  world-worn  waters  meet, 

Murmuring:  "Thou,  too,  shalt  deserve 

My  peace  when  thou  hast  learned  to  serve." 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


NAY,  do  not  grieve 
That  he  took  his  leave 
Unwarned,  from  friends  apart; 
Sublimest  peace 
Crowned  his  release — 

God's  finger  touched  his  heart. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


QUESTIONINGS 

IF  LIFE  were  a  day  that  glided  gay, 
And  all  of  its  hours  were  golden, 
Then  what  were  the  peace  of  a  pain's  release, 
Or  the  worth  of  a  truth  beholden? 

If  life  wore  a  hue  of  changeless  blue 

In  the  archway  of  its  heaven, 
Then  what  were  the  sun  when  the  storm  is  done, 

Or  a  rising  heart-hope's  leaven? 

If  life  were  a  sea,  from  dangers  free 

To  its  voyagers  on  their  way, 
Then  what  were  the  rest  by  a  soul  possessed 

At  the  end  of  its  mortal  day? 

If  life  were  a  laugh — its  bitter  half 
Unknown,  with  its  fear  and  forgiving, 

Then  what  were  the  gain  of  the  journey  vain 
Through  the  barren  land  of  the  living? 


70 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


TWO  STREAMS 

TWO  rivers,  rising  in  the  spring 
Of  every  human  life  do  flow, 
Their  waters  peace  and  suffering, 
For  one  is  joy,  and  one  is  woe. 

The  stream  of  joy,  beneath  the  sun, 
Reflects  his  dancing  beams  with  glee, 

While  careless  currents  rippling  run 
To  laugh  their  life  into  the  sea. 

The  other  stream,  dark,  drear  and  deep, 

Is  shrouded  in  the  mists  of  woe, 
While  o'er  its  banks,  dread  shades,  that  keep 

A  mournful  vigil,  come  and  go. 

Howe'er  we  may  bewail  the  one, 

Its  course  is  in  divine  control; 
For  human  good  both  rivers  run — 

They  make  the  true,  enduring  soul. 


71 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


LOVE  SONG 

PEACE  rests  upon  the  lap  of  spring, 
And  Nature's  gentle  blossoming 
Makes  gay  the  gladsome  bower  that  keeps 
My  lady,  as  she  sleeps. 

Joy  decorates  her  features  fair; 
Balm  floats  in  breezes  through  the  air 
And  all  the  wealth  of  Paradise 
About  her  being  lies. 

Love  lives  within  the  rosebud  bloom 
Upon  her  cheek;  its  sweet  perfume 
Comes  in  the  all-unconscious  sigh 
Escaping  silently. 

Heaven  waits  for  me  within  the  heart, 
That  beats  beneath  the  outer  part. 
Bless  wTith  thy  bounty,  Love  Divine, 
The  treasure  that  is  mine. 


7* 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


MAY  MUSINGS 

BRIGHT  the  sunlight  sheds  afar 
A  wealth  of  brilliancy; 
Does  it  kiss  the  cheeks  where  the  roses  are, 
The  cheeks  of  my  love,  for  me? 

Soft  the  balmy  zephyrs  blow 

Through  every  budding  tree; 
Do  they  breathe  a  message,  sweet  and  low, 

From  the  lips  of  my  love,  to  me? 

Buoyant  seems  the  new-born  spring 

With  ceaseless  harmony; 
Does  it  bring  more  close,  by  its  heightening, 

The  heart  of  my  love  to  me? 


78 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


A  GLANCE 

A  PAIR  of  eyes  I  saw  but  once 
Are  looking  into  mine, 
And  in  their  play 
The  laughter  gay 
And  tender  grace  together  shine 
As  when  I  saw  them  beaming  there. 

Come,  Cupid,  tell  your  captive  where 

Their  owner  dwells  today, 

That  I  may  thither  stray 

And  drink  again  the  dazzling  wine 

That  sparkles  with  a  wealth  divine 

Within  two  eyes  I  saw  but  once! 


74 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


MY  WISH 

MAY  the  voice 
Of  that  sweet  angel,  Patience,  whisper 
in  my  ear, 
And  guide  me  on  with  words  of  comfort  and 

of  cheer; 
Drive  from  my  mind  all  thought  of  doubt 

and  fear; 
This  is  my  choice. 

May  high  endeavor 

Direct  my  course  of  life  until  the  end; 
Be  my  companion  and  my  steadfast  friend 
Until  the  life  beyond  with  this  doth  blend, 

To  last  forever. 

May  the  light 

Of  that  far-shining  lamp,  Success, 

With  guiding  beams  my  humble  pathway 

bless, 
Enabling  me  sometime  in  future  to  possess 

Its  flame  so  bright. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


THE  OLD  AND  THE  NEW 

THE  glow  of  unforgotten  faces, 
The  lure  of  mem'ried  ways, 
Hallow  the  old,  old  places, 
Endear  the  old,  old  days. 

Yet  wider  boundaries  of  endeavor 
Come  with  the  rising  years, 

And  larger  hopes,  forever, 
Are  nurtured  by  our  tears. 

The  star  of  strong  deed  is  ascendant; 

The  joy  that  faith  imparts 
Makes  each  new  hour,  resplendent, 

A  summons  to  glad  hearts. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


PATRICK  A.  COLLINS 

A  HUNDRED  bells  are  tolling 
A  requiem  for  the  dead; 
A  thousand  flags,  half-masted, 

Are  drooping  overhead; 
A  million  hearts  are  mourning 
As  parting  prayers  are  said. 

A  city,  great  and  splendid, 
Bows  'neath  a  weight  of  grief; 

The  marts  of  trade  are  silent, 
Closed  by  a  common  lief, 

While  near  and  dear  are  kneeling 
Beside  the  fallen  chief. 

The  eulogies  are  spoken, 
But,  ah!  no  words  can  tell 

The  fullness  of  the  tribute 
His  noble  traits  compel; 

No  monument  need  mark  him, 
His  work  was  done  so  well! 


77 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


CALLED  to  the  helm  of  state  in  that  far 
day 

When  Webster  e'en  yet  in  the  forum  stood, 
His  name  for  half  a  century  had  sway 
As  synonym  for  civic  rectitude. 

Faithful  and  brave,  the  years  advancing  wrote 
Him  fullest  meed  of  honor  and  of  fame; 

The  mantle  proud  of  Sumner  and  of  Choate 
He  wore,  unflecked,  as  larger  duties  came. 

A  pilot  safe,  when  rock  and  reef  beset 

The  ship,  storm-tossed,  of  national  finance; 

True  friend  of  liberty,  his  sun  has  set 

But  long  shall  glow  his  mem'ry's  radiance. 


78 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


GEORGE  T.  ANGELL 

WELL  may  the  horse's  head  be  bowed; 
Well  may  all  dumb  beasts  mourn, 
As  to  the  tomb,  'neath  flower  and  shroud, 

Thy  precious  form  is  borne, 
Oh,  great  friend  of  the  weaker  kind, 

Who  upheld  mercy's  shield! 
Men's  hearts,  by  thy  sweet  life  refined, 

Their  tearful  tributes  yield, 
For  tender  word  and  soft  caress, 

Through  thy  humane  appeal, 
Rule  now  where  once,  with  cruel  stress, 

Men  plied  the  whip  and  steel. 


79 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


WASHINGTON 

LIKE    some    far    beacon    whose    unfailing 
flame, 

As  shadows  deepen,  shines  the  more  sub 
lime, 

So  gleams  the  strong,  pure  lustre  of  that  name 
Against  the  money-baseness  of  our  time! 


80 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


JEFFERSON 

MAJESTIC  in  the  grandeur  of  his  thought* 
A  seer  who  faced  the  future  with  no 
fears, 
A  people's  battles  in  his  prime  he  fought, 

And  bore  their  honors  richly  in  his  years — 
Champion  of  right,  forevermore  to  be 
The  arch  apostle  of  democracy ! 


81 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


MISTAKEN  IDENTITY 

SHE  spied  me  like  a  long-lost  friend; 
I'd  ne'er  seen  her  before; 
My  misery  you'll  comprehend 
Before  this  tale  is  o'er. 

'Twas  on  a  street  car;  to  the  seat 

Right  next  to  me  she  flew, 
Exclaiming  in  glad  tones  and  sweet, 

"Can  this  be  really  you?" 

My  first  misstep  was  taken  here, 

For  after  awkward  pause 
In  brief  reply  I  made  the  mere 

Admission  that  it  was. 


82 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

"You're  such  a  stranger,"  chirruped  she, 
"Pray  tell  me,  what's  the  news?" 

I  managed  skilfully  on  the 
Fine  weather  to  enthuse. 

And  while  in  mental  stress  I  sought 

For  exit  an  excuse, 
She  asked  me  if  I  really  thought 

Miss  Blake  would  marry  Luce. 

By  desperation  rendered  bold 

I  promptly  answered  yes, 
That  I  had  secretly  been  told 

She'd  bought  her  wedding  dress. 

She'd  heard  so.    Good !   But  Lord  what  next? 

"Oh,  how's  your  cousin  Nell?" 
Clear  sailing  here.    I  said,  unvexed, 

"She  never  was  so  well!" 

Ah,  what  a  shock  unheralded 
The  one  wrong  word  may  give ! 

"Why,  what  a  change!    The  doctor  said 
Last  night  she  couldn't  live." 

u  83 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Here,  happily,  my  luck  came  back; 

The  ordeal  was  o'er; 
Just  then  the  car  ran  off  the  track 

And  shot  me  through  the  door. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


THE  COLLEGE  CLOCK 

THE  merriest  potentate  am  I 
That  ever  turned  a  hand : 
I  make  the  moments  hasten  by 

With  absolute  command. 
I  emulate  no  heavenly  sun 

Nor  earthly  satellite; 
My  wheels  their  sportful  races  run 
As  fancy  may  invite. 

What  care  I  for  the  needs  of  men? 

My  subjects  are  the  hours. 
I  grant  them  respite  now  and  then 

From  their  eternal  tours. 
They  own  the  right  to  exercise 

The  veriest  of  ease, 
For  I  maintain  that  profit  lies 

In  going  as  you  please. 

86 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Sometimes  for  sport  I  throw  my  hands 

About,  as  in  distress. 
"Tis  fun  to  hear  my  human  friends 

Solicitude  express. 
And  then  I  work  the  college  bell, 

And  call  the  people  out; 
Sometimes  they  realize  the  sell 

And  swear  a  bit,  no  doubt. 

But,  safe  enthroned  above  them  all, 

I  thrive  with  Father  Time; 
He  serves  my  bidding  and  my  call 

With  gracefulness  sublime. 
The  years  will  hasten  quickly  by, 

But  e'er  my  rule  shall  stand; 
The  merriest  potentate  am  I 

That  ever  turned  a  hand ! 


86 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


DARTMOUTH 

small,  but  there  are  those  who  love 
it," 

Webster  pleaded  long  ago, 
When  the  skies  were  dark  above  it 
And  the  storm  was  bending  low. 

Now  'tis  great  and  thousands  render 

Tender  tribute  to  its  name; 
Now  its  cause  needs  no  defender, 

Yet  its  mission  is  the  same. 

True  to  its  ideals  keeping, 

Sure  and  pure  its  purpose  runs, 
Strong  as  its  own  spirit,  leaping 

In  the  pulses  of  its  sons. 

Bearing  high  the  torch  of  learning 

Northland's  granite  hills  above, 
Dartmouth's  bread  is  e'er  returning 

Tenfold  in  a  people's  love! 


87 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


SPHINX 

(Senior  society  initiation  banquet,  Dartmouth 
1893) 

THE  weariless  wings  of  another  year 
Have  borne  us  to  its  crowning  feast; 
So  let  us  hold  communion  here 

Until  the  glowing  East 

Shall   tell  us  that  the  twinkling  stars  their 
lenient  watch  have  ceased. 

The  breath  of  June  is  in  the  air 
And  the  joyful  world  in  its  festival 

Bids  us  be  free  from  fret  and  care, 
And  worship,  one  and  all, 

At  the  throne  where  fellowship  is  king,  and 
genial  arts  enthral. 

So  let  the  loving  cup  be  filled 

And  the  heart's  own  sacred  song  arise, 

For  still  we  walk,  as  the  gods  have  willed, 
Beneath  unclouded  skies, 

Beholding  still  the  boundless  world,  with  all 
its  rhapsodies. 

88 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

And  hail,  oh  loyal  band  who  now 

Have  worshipped  at  the  Mystic  Shrine, 

All  brothers  by  a  sacred  vow — 
The  future  will  be  thine, 

And  may  it  be  as  rich  as  gold,  as  sweet  as 
Samian  wine. 

May  fortune  bless  your  onward  way 
With  favors  that  she  best  bestows 

On  loyalty  that  lasts  for  aye, 
And  faithfulness  that  knows 

The  majesty  of  manhood,  and  the  debt  that 
honor  owes. 

Our  brothers  of  departed  years, 
In  spirit  with  us  as  we  celebrate — 

Dispelling  doubts,  dismissing  fears — 
Greet  and  congratulate 

The  comrades  who  now  pledge  to  keep  their 
trust  inviolate. 

Our  task  is  done.    To  them  we  leave 

Our  heritage  of  fellowship. 
About  their  hearts  will  friendship  weave 

A  network  that  will  keep 

Their  lives  in  harmony,  refreshed  by  joys  that 
never  sleep. 

80 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 

So  let  us  fill  the  cup  again, 

And  every  brother,  as  he  drinks, 
Will  bless  once  more  the  magic  chain 

Whose  adamantine  links 

Have  bound  him  with  the  mystic  band,  the 
children  of  the  Sphinx ! 


90 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


NEVER   MEET   TROUBLE    HALF   WAY 

NEVER  meet  trouble  half  way, 
Let  it  seek  you  out,  if  it  must, 
But  your  heart  open  wide,  and  bid  joy  come 

inside, 
And  dwell  in  abiding  trust. 

Never  meet  trouble  half  way, 

All  too  soon  will  the  shadows  fall; 

See  the  bloom,  not  the  blight;  not  the  gloom, 

but  the  light 
That  is  shining  over  all. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SOXV 


HALYCON 

BRIGHT  beam  the  stars  of  the  summer 
night, 

Clearer  than  diamonds  ever  shone, 
But  deeper  is  the  laughing  light 
Of  thy  blue  eyes,  my  Halcyon. 

Pink  are  the  parts  of  the  summer  rose, 

Pure  as  the  magic  tints  of  dawn, 
But  a  softer  color  comes  and  goes 

Across  thy  cheek,  my  Halcyon. 

Sweet  is  the  breath  of  the  summer  sky, 
As  it  kisses  the  green  earth  and  is  gone, 

But  sweeter  is  thine,  surpassingly, 
And  softer  it  comes,  my  Halcyon. 

Dear  are  the  mem'ries  of  summer  days, 
Yet  in  my  heart  there  lives  but  one; 

Bright,  through  the  ever-gathering  haze, 
Shall  shine  thy  face,  my  Halcyon! 


92 


STRAY  NOTES  Of  SONG 


UNDERNEATH  THE  HARBOR 

OLD  BOSTON  sets  the  pace  for  all 
In  tricks  of  rapid  transit; 
Years  back  her  subway  had  the  call 
E'er  other  towns  would  chance  it; 
And  then  to  make  ten  minutes  five 

They  built  the  "L"; 
Now,  sakes  alive,  it's  take  a  dive 
Down, 

Down 

Beneath  the  harbor. 

Just  make  the  plunge  the  tunnel  through — 

It  is  a  quick  transition; 
You're  up  and  out  in  a  "jiff"  or  two, 

No  time  for  intermission. 
A  shuttle  shot  in  a  deep,  smooth  bore 

The  car  glides  on, 

And  lo,  you're  o'er  to  the  other  shore 
From 

Down 

Beneath  the  harbor. 


93 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Care  not  what's  going  on  o'erhead — 

How  many  ships  are  dancing 
Above  you  as  you're  onward  sped 

On  trolley  trip  entrancing; 
The  water's  deep,  but  you  won't  get  drowned 

You  may  be  sure, 

For  it's  a  sound  hole  in  the  ground, 
Down, 

Down 

Beneath  the  harbor. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


LOVE  IS  ALL 

was  gleam  of  gold, 
And  raiment  to  allure,  and  rank  and 

title  old, 

And  sorrow  and  a  sigh, 
As  Love  passed  by. 

There  was  humble  fare, 

And    treasure    scant,    and    name    of   worldly 

glamor  bare. 

And  peace  with  Heaven  kin, 
As  Love  came  in. 


STRAY  ^7OTES  OF  SONG 


FRUIT  SALAD  FOR  TWO 

HE  THOUGHT  himself  the  choicest  plum 
that  grew  upon  the  tree; 
A  date  he  had  one  evening  with  a  peach  from 

Chicopee; 
They  were  a  charming  pear  indeed,  as,  strolling 

by  the  sea, 

He  vowed  the  apple  of  his  eye  she  evermore 
should  be. 

But  sad  his  fate — most  downcast  youth  in  all 

the  world  was  he, 
When  to  the  realms  of  orange  blooms  he  urged 

that  they  should  flee; 
The  lemon  that  she  handed  him  would  sour  a 

Russian  tea — 
"You're  full  of  prunes,  young  man,"  she  cried, 

"you  cantaloupe  with  me." 


96 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


HATS  OFF  TO  BABY  BROWN 

YOU  may  talk  about  babies  that  win  at  the 
fairs, 

Or  infants  of  princely  renown; 
But  show  me  the  kid  if  you  can  that  compares 
With  little  John  Nicholas  Brown. 

A  nurse  at  his  elbow,  at  ten  thousand  per, 
Keeps  watch  for  his  fret  or  his  frown; 

A  valet,  imported,  stands  by  to  defer 
To  the  whim  of  John  Nicholas  Brown. 

Ten  millions  piled  high  in  the  bank  in  his  name 
Can  buy  him  the  whole  of  the  town — 

Yet  he  gets  along  nicely  on  milk,  does  this  same 
Delightful  John  Nicholas  Brown. 

An  army  of  hirelings  are  ever  on  call 
To  pose  as  the  puppet  and  clown — 

Yet  when  he  would  play  he's  content  with  his 

doll, 
Is  joyful  John  Nicholas  Brown. 

97 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

When  they  put  him  to  bed  he  deliriously  lies 
In  a  heaven  of  silk  and  of  down — 

Yet  when  he  gets  hurt  it's  a  fact  that  he  cries, 
Does  doleful  John  Nicholas  Brown. 

You  may  talk  about  babies  to  wisdom  inclined, 

Or  infants  of  princely  renown, 
But  hunt  the  world  over  and  where  can  you 
find 

The  like  of  John  Nicholas  Brown? 


98 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


A  MANY-HUED  TALE 

YOUNG  Mister  Thomas  Black  was  wed  to 
Miss  Albina  White, 
And   Nancy   Greene    became   the  bride  of 

handsome  William  Gray. 

It  happened,  too,  that  our  old  friend  the  dash 
ing  David  Knight 

Did  woo  and  to  the  altar  lead  demure  Diana 
Day. 

Not  to  be  beat,  Augustus  Brown  sweet  Pauline 

Pearl  did  choose, 
And  all  set  up  housekeeping  in  a  tenement  of 

red. 
They  didn't  fight,  'tis  strange  to  say,  and  never 

had  the  blues — 

The  rainbow  of  domestic  peace  was  always 
overhead. 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


BLONDE  AND  BRUNETTE 

IT  IS  my  lot  to  be  in  love  with  two  who  are 
most  fair; 

I  don't  believe  that  you  can  find  their  equals 
anywhere. 

They  are  the  queens  of  womankind,  so  beauti 
ful  to  see — 

When  I'm  alone  with  either  one  I'd  humbly  bow 
the  knee; 

And  yet  they  are  no  more  alike  than  sunrise 
and  sunset, 

For  one's  a  large  blonde  lady,  one  a  small 
brunette. 


When  I  gaze  fondly  in  the  face  of  her  whose 

eyes  are  blue 
I  dream  of  April  violets  that  sparkle  with  the 

dew. 
Her  golden  hair  in  tresses  fine  like  sunlight 

seems  to  me, 


100 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

And  when  she  smiles  my  soul  is  thrilled  with 

boundless  esctasy. 
Tis  then  that  I  am  most  impelled  for  her  my 

cap  to  set — 
Give  me  the  large  blonde  lady,  not  the  small 

brunette. 

But  when  I  come  beneath  the  spell  of  her  of 

raven  hair 
No  other  beauty,  I'll  be  bound,  can  with  her 

own  compare; 
'Tis  like  the  glory  of  the  night,  and  as  from 

summer  skies, 
I  bask  in    star-like    radiance — the    magic    of 

her  eyes. 
She  charms  me  with  her  witching  smile;  I'm 

caught  fast  in  her  net — 
Not  for  me  the  blonde  lady;  mine,  the  small 

brunette. 

And  thus  my  heart,  a  pendulum,  swings  back 

and  forth,  in  vain; 
Were  there  a  happy  medium  the  way  of  love 

were  plain. 
But  golden  hair  and  tresses  dark  upon  one  head 

can't  grow 

101 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

And  she  with  one  eye  black,  one  blue,  would 

be  absurd,  I  know. 
It's  best  for  me,  I  plainly  see,  to  try  hard  to 

forget 
Even  the   large  blonde   lady,  and   the   small 

brunette. 


102 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


BENEATH  HER  PARASOL 

AH,  COQUETTISHLY  she  glances 
From  beneath  her  parasol; 
Message  vague  my  heart  entrances 
As  coquettishly  she  glances — 

Sparkle  of  black  eyes,  that's  all, 
But  she  stirs  my  fairest  fancies 
When  coquettishly  she  glances 
From  beneath  her  parasol ! 


103 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


WHICH? 

FAIREST  maiden  of  the  waltz, 
Are  you  true,  or  are  you  false? 

Are  your  ebon  eyes,  so  bright, 
But  a  counterfeit  delight? 

Doth  the  rose-bloom,  to  your  cheek 
Rise  when  other  voices  speak? 

Flutters  e'en  your  heart  of  hearts 
With  other  bliss  than  mine  imparts? 

Will  our  lives  forever  seem 
Like  the  music's  joyous  dream? 

Fairest  maiden  of  the  waltz 
Are  you  true,  or  are  you  false? 


104 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


WAR  SONG 

THERE'S  a  song  of  hallelujah  in  the  stir 
ring  bugle  call, 

There's  a  psean  in  the  cannon's  mighty  roar; 
There's  a  glory  in  the  flash,  in  the  fire  and  in 

the  crash 

Of  the  battle  as  it  breaks  on  Cuba's  shore. 
For  the  fight  is  for  the  right, 
And  the  banner  of  the  free 
Leads  a  nation's  men  of  might 
In  the  cause  of  liberty. 

There's   a   day  of  triumph   coming,   and  its 

splendid  dawn  shall  break 
On  a  land  that  long  has  been  the  tyrant's 

prey; 
Then  our  country  will  be  blest  by  a  people  sore 

oppressed, 

And  the  glory  of  our  arms  shall  last  for  aye. 
For  the  fight  is  for  the  right, 
And  the  banner  of  the  free 
Leads  a  nation's  men  of  might 
In  the  cause  of  liberty. 


105 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


ST.  VALENTINE 

A  TOAST  to  the  name  of  Valentine, 
Beloved  Saint  of  Hearts! 
While  cheeks  shall  glow  and  soft  eyes  shine, 

And  Cupid  holds  his  arts, 
This  day  each  year  we'll  sing  the  cheer 
His  memory  imparts. 

And  here's  to  the  magic  name  of  her 

Each  worships  as  the  best; 
Whose  matchless  charms  the  pulses  stir — 

Who  blesses  and  is  blest! 
And  here's  a  toast  to  all  the  host 

Who  love,  and  have  confessed! 


108 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


DESPAIR  NOT 

THY  brother's  talents  may  be  far 
More  generous  than  thine, 
And  fortune,  from  a  golden  star, 

Upon  his  path  may  shine; 
But  gifts  unused  for  human  weal 

Are  profitless  and  vain, 

While  thou,  with  naught  but  faith  and  zeal, 
A  laurel  crown  may  gain. 


107 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


SUNSET 

THE  tints  of  purple  and  of  pearl  combine 
With  amber  and  with  amethyst, 
While  golden  traces  softly  interline 

A  picture  by  Heaven's  roses  kissed, — 
With  glint  and  gleam  of  wonderland  bedight. 

Blent  by  a  touch  that  is  divine, 
Its  glories  carry  to  enraptured  height, 

On  radiant  wing,  thy  soul  and  mine. 
Ah,  holy  thrill  of  even's  ebbing  light 

As  morrow's  promises,  benignant,  shine 
In  God's  sweet  smile — the  world's  Goodnight! 


108 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


"THE  BOYS" 

WHEN  the  din  of  war  had  ended,  and  the 
smoke  had  rolled  away, 
And  the  Union's  soul  was  yearning  for  a  larger, 

brighter  day, 

A  million  men  strong-hearted  in  the  work  of 
Peace  were  they — 

"The  Boys"  in  Sixty-Six! 

The  hour  of  sacred  memories  returns;  a  pa 
geant  strong, 

Bone  and  sinew  of  the  Nation,  in  the  May- 
time  moves  along, 

While  a  People  proudly  honors,  with  the  meed 
of  cheer  and  song, 

"The  Boys"  in  Seventy-Six! 

Now  again  the  flags  are  flying  for  the  veterans' 

review; 
Judge  and  merchant,  sage  and  toiler,  comrades 

in  the  line  of  blue, 
Placing  wreathes  for  their  dead  brothers  on  the 

green  graves,  old  and  new 
"The  Boys"  in  Eighty-Six! 

109 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Gray  of  head  and  slow  of  footstep,  stooping 

'neath  the  length  of  days, 
Yet  they  march  with  hearts  of  heroes,  o'er  the 

old  familiar  ways, 
As  a  new-grown  generation  gratefully  its  token 

pays 

"The  Boys"  in  Ninety-Six! 

List  once  more  the  martial  music,  as  the  grand 

"old  guard"  appears — 
But  ah!  the  thinned  and  bended  legions — ah, 

the  pathos  of  the  years, 
As  we  render  them  our  tribute  in  the  tenderness 

of  tears — 

"The  Bovs"  in  Nineteen-Six ! 


no 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


THE   CALL  OF  THE   HERE-AND-NOW 

ONE  turned  his  face  from  the  dawn  away 
And  dwelt  in  the  Long  Ago; 
He  knew  none  blest  in  the  living  day, 

He  saw  none  gain  nor  grow; 
Earth's  good  things  all  had  gone  before, 
And  naught  should  profit  more. 

One  sang  the  songs  of  the  By-and-By, 

Wondrous  in  gifts  to  Man; 
He  dreamed  of  bounties  reaching  high 

In  a  kind  Creator's  plan; 
And  all  that  was  good  would  come  unsought, 
With  never  a  battle  fought. 

But  one  with  patience  set  his  brow 

And  heart  to  the  task  at  hand; 
Heeding  the  call  of  the  Here-and-Now, 

He  toiled  to  the  World's  demand; 
The  prayer  of  the  Long-Ago  made  he 
The  pledge  of  the  Yet-to-Be. 


ill 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


ORCHID  AND  WILD  ROSE 

AN  ORCHID  and  a  wild  rose  met, 
(Just  where  I  may  not  tell)— 
The  one  a  pampered,  hot-house  pet, 

The  other  from  the  dell. 
The  orchid  blushed  that  she  should  greet 

Such  lowly  company, 
She  who  "stood  high"  with  the  elite 

Of  proud  society. 
"Oh,  what  a  country  maid  you  are, 

But  I  suppose,"  she  said, 
"The  rustics  seek  you  near  and  far 

Because  your  cheeks  are  red. 
Poor  thing,  if  you  could  only  know 

The  pleasures  that  are  mine, 
The  lavishness  that  men  bestow 
My  colors  to  refine, 

112 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SOAV? 

The  eagerness  with  which  I'm  sought 

For  every  swell  soiree, 
The  romances  that  I  have  wrought 

In  circles  grand  and  gay, 
The  joys  of  music  and  of  wine 

As  languidly  I  rest, 
In  satins  and  in  laces  fine, 

Upon  milady's  breast!" 

Thus  spake  the  orchid  haughtily 

Unto  the  rose,  whose  red 
Had  deepened  'neath  the  sting,  till  she 

Looked  bravely  up  and  said: 

!'I  know  I'm  not  so  grand  as  you, 

But  mine's  a  happy  life 
Where  birds  are  free  and  heavens  are  blue, 

Far  from  the  city's  strife. 
I  am  not  sought  by  men  for  gold 

To  grace  Dame  Fashion's  feast, 
But  I  have  joys  to  you  untold — 

The  sunrise  in  the  east, 
The  laughter  of  the  mountain  rills 

And  children  at  their  play, 
The  beauty  of  the  purple  hills 

As  dusk  succeeds  the  day; 

113 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

And,  though  I  bloom  on  humble  sod 

And  frugal  is  my  fare, 
Unto  my  cheeks  the  kiss  of  God 

The  evening  breezes  bear!" 


114 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONO 


AS  WINTER  WINDS  ARE  BLOWING 

rpHOUGH  cold  winds  blow 
•*•      And  bleak  the  night, 
My  hearth's  aglow, 
My  heart  is  light — 

For  home  is  cheer 

'Neath  love's  sweet  sway 

Though  earth  be  drear, 
And  skies  be  gray. 

But,  oh,  for  those 

Who  hapless  roam; 
WTiom  love  ne'er  knows — 

Who  have  no  home. 


11* 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


KINDNESS 

NO  KINDLY  act's  too  small  to  be  worth 
while ; 

Oft  has  the  dross  of  gloom  and  fear 
Been  turned  to  gold  of  faith  and  cheer 
By  the  blest  alchemy  of  a  smile. 


lie 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


"OLD  IRONSIDES" 

UPON  her  decks  the  ringing  shout 
Of  victory  was  raised, 
And  glory's  messengers  spake  out 
As  her  ten-pounders  blazed. 

The  halo  of  an  endless  fame 
Has  crowned  her  colors  fair 

Since  patriot  hearts,  in  battle  flame, 
Conquered  the  Guerriere 

Sons  of  proud  sires,  do  you  not  hear 
This  brazen  threat  to  wrest 

The  jewel  that  is  held  most  dear 
From  old  New  England's  breast? 

If  days  of  mem'ried  shrines  are  past, 
Then  yield  the  vandal's  will — 

Put  Plymouth  Rock  unto  the  blast 
And  tear  down  Bunker  Hill ! 


117 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 


A  LITTLE  GIRL'S  PRAYER  TO  SANTA 
CLAUS 

UPON  the  church  steps,  kneeling  low, 
A  tiny  girl,  sad-faced,  alone, 
Was  mumbling  as  in  prayer;  the  snow 
Was  falling,  and  the  winds,  amoan, 
Proclaimed  a  drear  December  night. 

Men,   homeward  bound,   their  day's  work 

done 

Stopped  there,  transfixed,  so  strange  the  sight, 
And  listened  to  the  little  one. 

"I  pray,  good  Santa  Claus,  that  you 
Won't  quite  forget  my  mamma  dear; 

She  cries  a  lot,  and  feels  so  blue 

'Cause  things  ain't  like  they  was  last  year. 

118 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

You  see,  my  poor  papa  is  dead 
And  she  works,  oh,  so  hard  for  me 

And  Baby  Jack,  and  goes  to  bed 
Nights  just  as  tired  as  she  can  be. 

"And  when  I  asked  if  Santa  Claus 

Was  goin'  to  come  on  Christmas  Eve 
She  said  she  didn't  think  so,  'cause 

He  never  had  good  things  to  leave 
With  folks  that's  poor;  then  mamma  cried; 

And  that  is  why  I've  come  up  here 
To  ask  if  you  won't  lay  aside 

A  gift  or  two  for  mamma  dear." 

Who  says  that  Santa  did  not  hear 

The  tender  plea  of  that  sweet  child, 
And  follow  in  her  footsteps,  near, 

Till  she  was  safely  domiciled? 
Who  says  that  prayers  to  old  Saint  Nick 

Are  prayers  that  are  sent  up  in  vain? 
Nay,  good  old  Santa  is  a  brick — 

Long  may  his  rotund  form  remain ! 

'Tis  Christmas;  a  wan  woman  weeps 
Not  tears  of  sadness,  but  of  joy, 

For  at  her  door  are  piled  in  heaps 

Good  things  for  mother,  girl  and  boy; 

119 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONG 

Food  and  clothing  in  fine  array; 

Dolls,  and  cars  on  a  railroad  track; 
Books  and  blocks;  and  happy  are  they- 

Mamma  and  Girlie  and  Baby  Jack. 


120 


STRAY  NOTES  OF  SONQ 


GOOD  NIGHT 

GOOD  NIGHT;  the  shades  are  falling; 
The  sun  slips  from  the  West; 
The  kindly  stars  are  calling 
The  weary  world  to  rest. 

Good  night;  and  may  thy  slumbers 

Sweet  and  refreshing  be, 
In  His  blest  care  who  numbers 

The  mist-drops  of  the  sea. 

Good  night;  and  be  thy  waking 

Unto  a  day  made  fair, 
To  some  heart  that  is  aching, 

By  token  of  thy  care. 


121 


